The first three weeks of November have gone with
such a rush that I have neglected my diary and can
only patch it up from memory.

The dates seem unimportant, but throughout the period
the officers and men of the ship have been unremittingly
busy.

On arrival the ship was cleared of all the shore
party stores, including huts, sledges, &c. Within
five days she was in dock. Bowers attacked the ship's
stores, surveyed, relisted, and restowed them, saving
very much space by unstowing numerous cases and
stowing the contents in the lazarette. Meanwhile
our good friend Miller attacked the leak and traced
it to the stern. We found the false stem split,
and in one case a hole bored for a long-stem through-bolt
which was much too large for the bolt. Miller made
the excellent job in overcoming this difficulty
which I expected, and since the ship has been afloat
and loaded the leak is found to be enormously reduced.
The ship still leaks, but the amount of water entering
is little more than one would expect in an old wooden
vessel.

The stream which was visible and audible inside
the stern has been entirely stopped. Without steam
the leak can now be kept under with the hand pump
by two daily efforts of a quarter of an hour to
twenty minutes. As the ship was, and in her present
heavily laden condition,
it would certainly have taken three to four hours
each day.

Before the ship left dock, Bowers and Wyatt were
at work again in the shed with a party of stevedores,
sorting and relisting the shore party stores. Everything
seems to have gone without a hitch. The various
gifts and purchases made in New Zealand were collected--butter,
cheese, bacon, hams, some preserved meats, tongues.

Meanwhile the huts were erected on the waste ground
beyond the harbour works. Everything was overhauled,
sorted, and marked afresh to prevent difficulty
in the South. Davies, our excellent carpenter, Forde,
Abbott, and Keohane were employed in this work.
The large green tent was put up and proper supports
made for it.

When the ship came out of dock she presented a scene
of great industry. Officers and men of the ship,
with a party of stevedores, were busy storing the
holds. Miller's men were building horse stalls,
caulking the decks, resecuring the deckhouses, putting
in bolts and various small fittings. The engine-room
staff and Anderson's people on the engines; scientists
were stowing their laboratories; the cook refitting
his galley, and so forth--not a single spot but
had its band of workers.

We prepared to start our stowage much as follows:
The main hold contains all the shore party provisions
and part of the huts; above this on the main deck
is packed in wonderfully close fashion the remainder
of the wood of the huts, the sledges, and travelling
equipment, and the larger instruments and machines
to be employed by the scientific people; this encroaches
far on the men's space, but the extent has been
determined by their own wish; they have requested,
through Evans, that they should not be considered:
they were prepared to pig it anyhow, and a few cubic
feet of space didn't matter--such is their spirit.

The men's space, such as it is, therefore, extends
from the fore hatch to the stem on the main deck.

Under the forecastle are stalls for fifteen ponies,
the maximum the space would hold; the narrow irregular
space in front is packed tight with fodder.

Immediately behind the forecastle bulkhead is the
small booby hatch, the only entrance to the men's
mess deck in bad weather. Next comes the foremast,
and between that and the fore hatch the galley and
winch; on the port side of the fore hatch are stalls
for four ponies--a very stout wooden structure.

Abaft the fore hatch is the ice-house. We managed
to get 3 tons of ice, 162 carcases of mutton, and
three carcases of beef, besides some boxes of sweetbreads
and kidneys, into this space. The carcases are stowed
in tiers with wooden battens between the tiers--it
looks a triumph of orderly stowage, and I have great
hope that it will ensure fresh mutton throughout
our winter.

On either side of the main hatch and close up to
the ice-house are two out of our three motor sledges;
the third rests across the break of the poop in
a space formerly occupied by a winch.

In front of the break of the poop is a stack of
petrol cases; a further stack surmounted with bales
of fodder stands between the main hatch and the
mainmast, and cases of petrol, paraffin, and alcohol,
arranged along either gangway.

We have managed to get 405 tons of coal in bunkers
and main hold, 25 tons in a space left in the fore
hold, and a little over 30 tons on the upper deck.

The sacks containing this last, added to the goods
already mentioned, make a really heavy deck cargo,
and one is naturally anxious concerning it; but
everything that can be done by lashing and securing
has been done.

The appearance of confusion on deck is completed
by our thirty-three dogs 1 chained to stanchions
and bolts on the ice-house and on the main hatch,
between the motor sledges.

With all these stores on board the ship still stood
two inches above her load mark. The tanks are filled
with compressed forage, except one, which contains
12 tons of fresh water, enough, we hope, to take
us to the ice.

Forage I originally ordered 30 tons
of compressed oaten hay from Melbourne. Oates has
gradually persuaded us that this is insufficient,
and our pony food weight has gone up to 45 tons,
besides 3 or 4 tons for immediate use. The extra
consists of 5 tons of hay, 5 or 6 tons of oil-cake,
4 or 5 tons of bran, and some crushed oats. We are
not taking any corn.

We have managed to wedge in all the dog biscuits,
the total weight being about 5 tons; Meares is reluctant
to feed the dogs on seal, but I think we ought to
do so during the winter.

We stayed with the Kinseys at their house 'Te Han'
at Clifton. The house stands at the edge of the
cliff, 400 feet above the sea, and looks far over
the Christchurch plains and the long northern beach
which limits it; close beneath one is the harbour
bar and winding estuary of the two small rivers,
the Avon and Waimakariri. Far away beyond the plains
are the mountains, ever changing their aspect, and
yet farther in over this northern sweep of sea can
be seen in clear weather the beautiful snow-capped
peaks of the Kaikouras. The scene is wholly enchanting,
and such a view from some sheltered sunny corner
in a garden which blazes with masses of red and
golden flowers tends to feelings of inexpressible
satisfaction with all things. At night we slept
in this garden under peaceful clear skies; by day
I was off to my office in Christchurch, then perhaps
to the ship or the Island, and so home by the mountain
road over the Port Hills. It is a pleasant time
to remember in spite of interruptions--and it gave
time for many necessary consultations with Kinsey.
His interest in the expedition is wonderful, and
such interest on the part of a thoroughly shrewd
business man is an asset of which I have taken full
advantage. Kinsey will act as my agent in Christchurch
during my absence; I have given him an ordinary
power of attorney, and I think have left him in
possession of all facts. His kindness to us was
beyond words.

The Voyage Out

Saturday, November 26
We advertised our start at
3 P.M., and at three minutes to that hour the Terra
Nova pushed off from the jetty. A great mass of
people assembled. K. and I lunched with a party
in the New Zealand Company's ship Ruapehu . Mr.
Kinsey, Ainsley, the Arthur and George Rhodes, Sir
George Clifford, &c. 2 K. and I went out in the
ship, but left her inside the heads after passing
the Cambrian , the only Naval ship present. We came
home in the Harbour Tug; two other tugs followed
the ship out and innumerable small boats. Ponting
busy with cinematograph. We walked over the hills
to Sumner. Saw the Terra Nova, a little dot to the
S.E.

Tuesday, November 29Saw Fenwick re Central News
agreement--to town. Thanked Glendenning for handsome
gift, 130 grey jerseys. To Town Hall to see Mayor.
Found all well on board.

We left the wharf at 2.30--bright sunshine--very
gay scene. If anything more craft following us than
at Lyttelton--Mrs. Wilson, Mrs. Evans, and K. left
at Heads and back in Harbour Tug. Other tugs followed
farther with Volunteer Reserve Gunboat--all left
about 4.30. Pennell 'swung' the ship for compass
adjustment, then 'away.'

Evening Loom of land and Cape Saunders
Light blinking. Wednesday, November 30Noon no miles. Light breeze
from northward all day, freshening towards nightfall
and turning to N.W. Bright sunshine. Ship pitching
with south-westerly swell. All in good spirits except
one or two sick.

We are away, sliding easily and smoothly through
the water, but burning coal--8 tons in 24 hours
reported 8 P.M.

Thursday, December 1The month opens well on the
whole. During the night the wind increased; we worked
up to 8, to 9, and to 9.5 knots. Stiff wind from
N.W. and confused sea. Awoke to much motion.

The ship a queer and not altogether cheerful sight
under the circumstances.

Below one knows all space is packed as tight as
human skill can devise--and on deck! Under the forecastle
fifteen ponies close side by side, seven one side,
eight the other, heads together and groom between--swaying,
swaying continually to the plunging, irregular motion.

One takes a look through a hole in the bulkhead
and sees a row of heads with sad, patient eyes come
swinging up together from the starboard side, whilst
those on the port swing back; then up come the port
heads, whilst the starboard recede. It seems a terrible
ordeal for these poor beasts to stand this day after
day for weeks together, and indeed though they continue
to feed well the strain quickly drags down their
weight and condition; but nevertheless the trial
cannot be gauged from human standards. There are
horses which never lie down, and all horses can
sleep standing; anatomically they possess a ligament
in each leg which takes their weight without strain.
Even our poor animals will get rest and sleep in
spite of the violent motion. Some 4 or 5 tons of
fodder and the ever watchful Anton take up the remainder
of the forecastle space. Anton is suffering badly
from sea-sickness, but last night he smoked a cigar.
He smoked a little, then had an interval of evacuation,
and back to his cigar whilst he rubbed his stomach
and remarked to Oates 'no good'--gallant little
Anton!

There are four ponies outside the forecastle and
to leeward of the fore hatch, and on the whole,
perhaps, with shielding tarpaulins, they have a
rather better time than their comrades. Just behind
the ice-house and on either side of the main hatch
are two enormous packing-cases containing motor
sledges, each 16 byť 4; mounted as they
are several inches above the deck they take a formidable
amount of space. A third sledge stands across the
break of the poop in the space hitherto occupied
by the after winch. All these cases are covered
with stout tarpaulin and lashed with heavy chain
and rope lashings, so that they may be absolutely
secure.

The petrol for these sledges is contained in tins
and drums protected in stout wooden packing-cases
which are ranged across the deck immediately in
front of the poop and abreast the motor sledges.
The quantity is 2 1/2 tons and the space occupied
considerable.

Round and about these packing-cases, stretching
from the galley forward to the wheel aft, the deck
is stacked with coal bags forming our deck cargo
of coal, now rapidly diminishing.

We left Port Chalmers with 462 tons of coal on board,
rather a greater quantity than I had hoped for,
and yet the load mark was 3 inches above the water.
The ship was over 2 feet by the stern, but this
will soon be remedied.

Upon the coal sacks, upon and between the motor
sledges and upon the ice-house are grouped the dogs,
thirty-three in all. They must perforce be chained
up and they are given what shelter is afforded on
deck, but their position is not enviable. The seas
continually break on the weather bulwarks and scatter
clouds of heavy spray over the backs of all who
must venture into, the waist of the ship. The dogs
sit with their tails to this invading water, their
coats wet and dripping. It is a pathetic attitude,
deeply significant of cold and misery; occasionally
some poor beast emits a long pathetic whine. The
group forms a picture of wretched dejection; such
a life is truly hard for these poor creatures.

We manage somehow to find a seat for everyone at
our cabin table, although the wardroom contains
twenty-four officers. There are generally one or
two on watch, which eases matters, but it is a squash.
Our meals are simple enough, but it is really remarkable
to see the manner in which our two stewards, Hooper
and Neald, provide for all requirements, washing
up, tidying cabin, and making themselves generally
useful in the cheerfullest manner.

With such a large number of hands on board, allowing
nine seamen in each watch, the ship is easily worked,
and Meares and Oates have their appointed assistants
to help them in custody of dogs and ponies, but
on such a night as the last with the prospect of
dirty weather, the
'after guard' of volunteers is awake and exhibiting
its delightful enthusiasm in the cause of safety
and comfort--some are ready to lend a hand if there
is difficulty with ponies and dogs, others in shortening
or trimming sails, and others again in keeping the
bunkers filled with the deck coal.

I think Priestley is the most seriously incapacitated
by sea-sickness--others who might be as bad have
had some experience of the ship and her movement.
Ponting cannot face meals but sticks to his work;
on the way to Port Chalmers I am told that he posed
several groups before the cinematograph, though
obliged repeatedly to retire to the ship's side.
Yesterday he was developing plates with the developing
dish in one hand and an ordinary basin in the other!

We have run 190 miles to-day: a good start, but
inconvenient in one respect--we have been making
for Campbell Island, but early this morning it became
evident that our rapid progress would bring us to
the Island in the middle of the night, instead of
to-morrow, as I had anticipated. The delay of waiting
for daylight would not be advisable under the circumstances,
so we gave up this item of our programme.

Later in the day the wind has veered to the westward,
heading us slightly. I trust it will not go further
round; we are now more than a point to eastward
of our course to the ice, and three points to leeward
of that to Campbell Island, so that we should not
have fetched the Island anyhow.

Friday, December 1A day of great disaster. From
4 o'clock last night the wind freshened with great
rapidity, and very shortly we were under topsails,
jib, and staysail only. It blew very hard and the
sea got up at once. Soon we were plunging heavily
and taking much water over the lee rail. Oates and
Atkinson with intermittent assistance from others
were busy keeping the ponies on their legs. Cases
of petrol, forage, etc., began to break loose
on the upper deck; the principal trouble was caused
by the loose coal-bags, which were bodily lifted
by the seas and swung against the lashed cases.
'You know how carefully everything had been lashed,
but no lashings could have withstood the onslaught
of these coal sacks for long'; they acted like battering
rams. 'There was nothing for it but to grapple with
the evil, and nearly all hands were labouring for
hours in the waist of the ship, heaving coal sacks
overboard and re-lashing the petrol cases, etc.,
in the best manner possible under such difficult
and dangerous circumstances. The seas were continually
breaking over these people and now and again they
would be completely submerged. At such times they
had to cling for dear life to some fixture to prevent
themselves being washed overboard, and with coal
bags and loose cases washing about, there was every
risk of such hold being torn away.'

'No sooner was some semblance of order restored
than some exceptionally heavy wave would tear away
the lashing and the work had to be done all over
again.'

The night wore on, the sea and wind ever rising,
and the ship ever plunging more distractedly; we
shortened sail to main topsail and staysail, stopped
engines and hove to, but to little purpose. Tales
of ponies down came frequently from forward, where
Oates and Atkinson laboured through the entire night.
Worse was to follow, much worse--a report from the
engine-room that the pumps had choked and the water
risen over the gratings.

From this moment, about 4 A.M., the engine-room
became the centre of interest. The water gained
in spite of every effort. Lashley, to his neck in
rushing water, stuck gamely to the work of clearing
suctions. For a time, with donkey engine and bilge
pump sucking, it looked as though the water would
be got under; but the hope was short-lived: five
minutes of pumping invariably led to the same result--a
general choking of the pumps.

The outlook appeared grim. The amount of water which
was being made, with the ship so roughly handled,
was most uncertain. 'We knew that normally the ship
was not making much water, but we also knew that
a considerable part of the water washing over the
upper deck must be finding its way below; the decks
were leaking in streams. The ship was very deeply
laden; it did not need the addition of much water
to get her water-logged, in which condition anything
might have happened.' The hand pump produced only
a dribble, and its suction could not be got at;
as the water crept higher it got in contact with
the boiler and grew warmer--so hot at last that
no one could work at the suctions. Williams had
to confess he was beaten and must draw fires. What
was to be done? Things for the moment appeared very
black. The sea seemed higher than ever; it came
over lee rail and poop, a rush of green water; the
ship wallowed in it; a great piece of the bulwark
carried clean away. The bilge pump is dependent
on the main engine. To use the pump it was necessary
to go ahead. It was at such times that the heaviest
seas swept in over the lee rail; over and over [again]
the rail, from the forerigging to the main, was
covered by a solid sheet of curling water which
swept aft and high on the poop. On one occasion
I was waist deep when standing on the rail of the
poop.

The scene on deck was devastating, and in the engine-room
the water, though really not great in quantity,
rushed over the floor plates and frames in a fashion
that gave it a fearful significance.

The afterguard were organised in two parties by
Evans to work buckets; the men were kept steadily
going on the choked hand pumps--this seemed all
that could be done for the moment, and what a measure
to count as the sole safeguard of the ship from
sinking, practically an attempt to bale her out!
Yet strange as it may seem the effort has not been
wholly fruitless--the string of buckets which has
now been kept going for four hours, [1] together
with the dribble from the pump, has kept the water
under--if anything there is a small decrease.

Meanwhile we have been thinking of a way to get
at the suction of the pump: a hole is being made
in the engine-room bulkhead, the coal between this
and the pump shaft will be removed, and a hole made
in the shaft. With so much water coming on board,
it is impossible to open the hatch over the shaft.
We are not out of the wood, but hope dawns, as indeed
it should for me, when I find myself so wonderfully
served. Officers and men are singing chanties over
their arduous work. Williams is working in sweltering
heat behind the boiler to get the door made in the
bulkhead. Not a single one has lost his good spirits.
A dog was drowned last night, one pony is dead and
two others in a bad condition--probably they too
will go. 'Occasionally a heavy sea would bear one
of them away, and he was only saved by his chain.
Meares with some helpers had constantly to be rescuing
these wretched creatures from hanging, and trying
to find them better shelter, an almost hopeless
task. One poor beast was found hanging when dead;
one was washed away with such force that his chain
broke and he disappeared overboard; the next wave
miraculously washed him on board again and he is
now fit and well.' The gale has exacted heavy toll,
but I feel all will be well if we can only cope
with the water. Another dog has just been washed
overboard--alas! Thank God, the gale is abating.
The sea is still mountainously high, but the ship
is not labouring so heavily as she was. I pray we
may be under sail again before morning.

Saturday, December 3Yesterday the wind slowly fell
towards evening; less water was taken on board,
therefore less found its way below, and it soon
became evident that our baling was gaining on the
engine-room. The work was steadily kept going in
two-hour shifts. By
10 P.M. the hole in the engine-room bulkhead was
completed, and (Lieut.) Evans, wriggling over the
coal, found his way to the pump shaft and down it.
He soon cleared the suction 'of the coal balls (a
mixture of coal and oil) which choked it,' and to
the joy of all a good stream of water came from
the pump for the first time. From this moment it
was evident we should get over the difficulty, and
though the pump choked again on several occasions
the water in the engine-room steadily decreased.
It was good to visit that spot this morning and
to find that the water no longer swished from side
to side. In the forenoon fires were laid and lighted--the
hand pump was got into complete order and sucked
the bilges almost dry, so that great quantities
of coal and ashes could be taken out.

Now all is well again, and we are steaming and sailing
steadily south within two points of our course.
Campbell and Bowers have been busy
relisting everything on the upper deck. This afternoon
we got out the two dead ponies through the forecastle
skylight. It was a curious proceeding, as the space
looked quite inadequate for their passage. We looked
into the ice-house and found it in the best order.

Though we are not yet safe, as another gale might
have disastrous results, it is wonderful to realise
the change which has been wrought in our outlook
in twenty-four hours. The others have confessed
the gravely serious view of our position which they
shared with me yesterday, and now we are all hopeful
again.

As far as one can gather, besides the damage to
the bulwarks of the ship, we have lost two ponies,
one dog, '10 tons of coal,' 65 gallons of petrol,
and a case of the biologists' spirit--a serious
loss enough, but much less than I expected. 'All
things considered we have come off lightly, but
it was bad luck to strike a gale at such a time.'
The third pony which was down in a sling for some
time in the gale is again on his feet. He looks
a little groggy, but may pull through if we don't
have another gale. Osman, our best sledge dog, was
very bad this morning, but has been lying warmly
in hay all day, and is now much better. 'Several
more were in a very bad way and needed nursing back
to life.' The sea and wind seem to be increasing
again, and there is a heavy southerly swell, but
the glass is high; we ought not to have another
gale till it falls. 3

Monday, December 5Lat. 56° 40'The barometer has been almost
steady since Saturday, the wind rising and falling
slightly, but steady in direction from the west.
From a point off course we have crept up to the
course itself. Everything looks prosperous except
the ponies. Up to this morning, in spite of favourable
wind and sea, the ship has been pitching heavily
to a south-westerly swell. This has tried the animals
badly, especially those under the forecastle. We
had thought the ponies on the port side to be pretty
safe, but two of them seem to me to be groggy, and
I doubt if they could stand more heavy weather without
a spell of rest. I pray there may be no more gales.
We
should be nearing the limits of the westerlies,
but one cannot be sure for at least two days. There
is still a swell from the S.W., though it is not
nearly so heavy as yesterday, but I devoutly wish
it would vanish altogether. So much depends on fine
weather. December ought to be a fine month in the
Ross Sea; it always has been, and just now conditions
point to fine weather. Well, we must be prepared
for anything, but I'm anxious, anxious about these
animals of ours.

The dogs have quite recovered since the fine weather--they
are quite in good form again.

Our deck cargo is getting reduced; all the coal
is off the upper deck and the petrol is re-stored
in better fashion; as far as that is concerned we
should not mind another blow. Campbell and Bowers
have been untiring in getting things straight on
deck.

The idea of making our station Cape Crozier has
again come on the tapis. There would be many advantages:
the ease of getting there at an
early date, the fact that none of the autumn or
summer parties could be cut off, the fact that the
main Barrier could be reached without crossing crevasses
and that the track to the Pole would be due south
from the first:--the mild condition and absence
of blizzards at the penguin rookery, the opportunity
of studying the Emperor penguin incubation, and
the new interest of the geology of Terror, besides
minor facilities, such as the getting of ice, stones
for shelters, &c. The disadvantages mainly consist
in the possible difficulty of landing stores--a
swell would make things very unpleasant, and might
possibly prevent the landing of the horses and motors.
Then again it would be certain that some distance
of bare rock would have to be traversed before a
good snow surface was reached from the hut, and
possibly a climb of 300 or 400 feet would intervene.
Again, it might be difficult to handle the ship
whilst stores were being landed, owing to current,
bergs, and floe ice. It remains to be seen, but
the prospect is certainly alluring. At a pinch we
could land the ponies in McMurdo Sound and let them
walk round.

The sun is shining brightly this afternoon, everything
is drying, and I think the swell continues to subside.

Tuesday, December 6Lat. 59° 7'. Long. 177°
51' E. Made good S. 17 E. 153; 457' to Circle. The
promise of yesterday has been fulfilled, the swell
has continued to subside, and this afternoon we
go so steadily that we have much comfort. I am truly
thankful mainly for the sake of the ponies; poor
things, they look thin and scraggy enough, but generally
brighter and fitter. There is no doubt the forecastle
is a bad place for them, but in any case some must
have gone there. The four midship ponies, which
were expected to be subject to the worst conditions,
have had a much better time than their fellows.
A few ponies have swollen legs, but all are feeding
well. The wind failed in the morning watch and later
a faint breeze came from the eastward; the barometer
has been falling, but not on a steep gradient; it
is still above normal. This afternoon it is overcast
with a Scotch mist. Another day ought to put us
beyond the reach of westerly gales.

We still continue to discuss the project of landing
at Cape Crozier, and the prospect grows more fascinating
as we realise it. For instance, we ought from such
a base to get an excellent idea of the Barrier movement,
and of the relative movement amongst the pressure
ridges. There is no doubt it would be a tremendous
stroke of luck to get safely landed there with all
our paraphernalia.

Everyone is very cheerful--one hears laughter and
song all day--it's delightful to be with such a
merry crew. A week from New Zealand to-day.

Wednesday, December
7Lat. 61° 22'. Long. 179°
56' W. Made good S. 25 E. 150; Ant. Circle 313'.
The barometer descended on a steep regular gradient
all night, turning suddenly to an equally steep
up grade this morning. With the turn a smart breeze
sprang up from the
S.W. and forced us three points off our course.
The sea has remained calm, seeming to show that
the ice is not far off; this afternoon temperature
of air and water both 34°, supporting the assumption.
The wind has come fair and we are on our course
again, going between 7 and 8 knots.

Quantities of whale birds about the ship, the first
fulmars and the first McCormick skua seen. Last
night saw 'hour glass' dolphins about. Sooty and
black-browed albatrosses continue, with Cape chickens.
The cold makes people hungry and one gets just a
tremor on seeing the marvellous disappearance of
consumables when our twenty-four young appetites
have to be appeased.

Last night I discussed the Western Geological Party,
and explained to Ponting the desirability of his
going with it. I had thought he ought to be in charge,
as the oldest and most experienced traveller, and
mentioned it to him--then to Griffith Taylor. The
latter was evidently deeply disappointed. So we
three talked the matter out between us, and Ponting
at once disclaimed any right, and announced cheerful
agreement with Taylor's leadership; it was a satisfactory
arrangement, and shows Ponting in a very pleasant
light. I'm sure he's a very nice fellow.

I would record here a symptom of the spirit which
actuates the men. After the gale the main deck under
the forecastle space in which the ponies are stabled
leaked badly, and the dirt of the stable leaked
through on hammocks and bedding. Not a word has
been said; the men living in that part have done
their best to fend off the nuisance with oilskins
and canvas, but without sign of complaint. Indeed
the discomfort throughout the mess deck has been
extreme. Everything has been thrown about, water
has found its way down in a dozen places. There
is no daylight, and air can come only through the
small fore hatch; the artificial lamplight has given
much trouble. The men have been wetted to the skin
repeatedly on deck, and have no chance of drying
their clothing. All things considered, their cheerful
fortitude is little short of wonderful.

First Ice There was a report of ice at
dinner to-night. Evans corroborated Cheetham's statement
that there was a berg far away to the west, showing
now and again as the sun burst through the clouds.

Thursday, December 863° 20'. 177° 22'. S.
31 E. 138'; to Circle 191'. The wind increased in
the first watch last night to a moderate gale. The
ship close hauled held within two points of her
course. Topgallant sails and mainsail were furled,
and later in the night the wind gradually crept
ahead. At 6 A.M. we were obliged to furl everything,
and throughout the day we have been plunging against
a stiff breeze and moderate sea. This afternoon
by keeping a little to eastward of the course, we
have managed to get fore and aft sail filled. The
barometer has continued its steady upward path for
twenty-four hours; it shows signs of turning, having
reached within 1/10th of 30 inches. It was light
throughout last night (always a cheerful condition),
but this head wind is trying to the patience, more
especially as our coal expenditure is more than
I estimated. We manage 62 or 63 revolutions on about
9 tons, but have to distil every three days at expense
of half a ton, and then there is a weekly half ton
for the cook. It is certainly a case of fighting
one's way South.

I was much disturbed last night by the motion; the
ship was pitching and twisting with short sharp
movements on a confused sea, and with every plunge
my thoughts flew to our poor ponies. This afternoon
they are fairly well, but one knows that they must
be getting weaker as time goes on, and one longs
to give them a good sound rest with the ship on
an even keel. Poor patient beasts! One wonders how
far the memory of such fearful discomfort will remain
with them--animals so often remember places and
conditions where they have encountered difficulties
or hurt. Do they only recollect circumstances which
are deeply impressed by some shock of fear or sudden
pain, and does the
remembrance of prolonged strain pass away? Who can
tell? But it would seem strangely merciful if nature
should blot out these weeks of slow but inevitable
torture.

The dogs are in great form again; for them the greatest
circumstance of discomfort is to be constantly wet.
It was this circumstance prolonged throughout the
gale which nearly lost us our splendid leader 'Osman.'
In the morning he was discovered utterly exhausted
and only
feebly trembling; life was very nearly out of him.
He was buried in hay, and lay so for twenty-four
hours, refusing food--the wonderful hardihood of
his species was again shown by the fact that within
another twenty-four hours he was to all appearance
as fit as ever.

Antarctic petrels have come about us. This afternoon
one was caught.

Later, about 7 P.M. Evans saw two icebergs far on
the port beam; they could only be seen from the
masthead. Whales have been frequently
seen--Balaenoptera Sibbaldi--supposed to be the
biggest mammal that has ever existed. 4

Friday, December 965° 8'. 177° 41'. Made
good S. 4 W. 109'; Scott Island S. 22 W. 147'. At
six this morning bergs and pack were reported ahead;
at first we thought the pack might consist only
of fragments of the bergs, but on entering a stream
we found small worn
floes--the ice not more than two or three feet in
thickness. 'I had hoped that we should not meet
it till we reached latitude 66 1/2 or at least 66.'
We decided to work to the south and west as far
as the open water would allow, and have met with
some success. At 4 P.M., as I write, we are still
in open water, having kept a fairly straight course
and come through five or six light streams of ice,
none more than 300 yards across.

We have passed some very beautiful bergs, mostly
tabular. The heights have varied from 60 to 80 feet,
and I am getting to think that this part of the
Antarctic yields few bergs of greater altitude.

Two bergs deserve some description. One, passed
very close on port hand in order that it might be
cinematographed, was about 80 feet in
height, and tabular. It seemed to have been calved
at a comparatively recent date.

The above picture shows its peculiarities, and points
to the desirability of close examination of other
berg faces. There seemed to be a distinct difference
of origin between the upper and lower portions of
the berg, as though a land glacier had been covered
by layer after layer of seasonal snow. Then again,
what I have described as 'intrusive layers of blue
ice' was a remarkable feature; one could imagine
that these layers represent surfaces which have
been transformed by regelation under hot sun and
wind.

This point required investigation.

The second berg was distinguished by innumerable
vertical cracks. These seemed to run criss-cross
and to weaken the structure, so that the various
seracs formed by them had bent to different angles
and shapes, giving a very irregular surface to the
berg, and a face scarred with immense vertical fissures.

One imagines that such a berg has come from a region
of ice disturbance such as King Edward's Land.

We have seen a good many whales to-day, rorquals
with high black spouts-- Balaenoptera Sibbaldi
.

The birds with us: Antarctic and snow petrel--a
fulmar--and this morning Cape pigeon.

We have pack ice farther north than expected, and
it's impossible to interpret the fact. One hopes
that we shall not have anything heavy, but I'm afraid
there's not much to build upon. 10 P.MWe have made good progress
throughout the day, but the ice streams thicken
as we advance, and on either side of us the pack
now appears in considerable fields. We still pass
quantities of bergs, perhaps nearly one-half
the number tabular, but the rest worn and fantastic.

The sky has been wonderful, with every form of cloud
in every condition of light and shade; the sun has
continually appeared through breaks
in the cloudy heavens from time to time, brilliantly
illuminating some field of pack, some steep-walled
berg, or some patch of bluest sea. So
sunlight and shadow have chased each other across
our scene. To-night there is little or no swell--the
ship is on an even keel, steady,
save for the occasional shocks on striking ice.

It is difficult to express the sense of relief this
steadiness gives after our storm-tossed passage.
One can only imagine the relief and comfort afforded
to the ponies, but the dogs are visibly cheered
and the human element is full of gaiety. The voyage
seems full of promise in spite of the imminence
of delay.

If the pack becomes thick I shall certainly put
the fires out and wait for it to open. I do not
think it ought to remain close for long in this
meridian. To-night we must be beyond the 66th parallel.

Saturday, December 10Dead Reckoning 66° 38'.
Long. 178° 47'. Made good S. 17 W. 94. C. Crozier
688'. Stayed on deck till midnight. The sun just
dipped below the southern horizon. The scene was
incomparable. The northern sky was gloriously rosy
and reflected in the calm sea between the ice, which
varied from burnished copper to salmon pink; bergs
and pack to the north had a pale greenish hue with
deep purple shadows, the sky shaded to saffron and
pale green. We gazed long at these beautiful effects.
The ship made through leads during the night; morning
found us pretty well at the end of the open water.
We stopped to water ship from a nice hummocky floe.
We made about 8 tons of water. Rennick took a sounding,
1960 fathoms; the tube brought up two small lumps
of volcanic lava with the usual globigerina ooze.

Wilson shot a number of Antarctic petrel and snowy
petrel. Nelson got some crustaceans and other beasts
with a vertical tow net, and got a water sample
and temperatures at 400 metres. The water was warmer
at that depth. About 1.30 we proceeded at first
through fairly easy pack, then in amongst very heavy
old floes grouped about a big berg; we shot out
of this and made a detour, getting easier going;
but though the floes were less formidable as we
proceeded south, the pack grew thicker. I noticed
large floes of comparatively thin ice very sodden
and easily split; these are similar to some we went
through in the Discovery , but tougher by a month.

At three we stopped and shot four crab-eater seals;
to-night we had the livers for dinner--they were
excellent.

To-night we are in very close pack--it is doubtful
if it is worth pushing on, but an arch of clear
sky which has shown to the southward all day makes
me think that there must be clearer water in that
direction; perhaps only some 20 miles away--but
20 miles is much under present conditions. As I
came below to bed at 11 P.M. Bruce was slogging
away, making fair progress, but now and again brought
up altogether. I noticed the ice was becoming much
smoother and thinner, with occasional signs of pressure,
between which the ice was very thin.

'We had been very carefully into all the evidence
of former voyages to pick the best meridian to go
south on, and I thought and still think that the
evidence points to the 178 W. as the best. We entered
the pack more or less on this meridian, and have
been rewarded by encountering worse conditions than
any ship has had before. Worse, in fact, than I
imagined would have been possible on any other meridian
of those from which we could have chosen.

'To understand the difficulty of the position you
must appreciate what the pack is and how little
is known of its movements.

'The pack in this part of the world consists (1)
of the ice which has formed over the sea on the
fringe of the Antarctic continent during the last
winter; (2) of very heavy old ice floes which have
broken out of bays and inlets during the previous
summer, but have not had time to get north before
the winter set in; (3) of comparatively heavy ice
formed over the Ross Sea early in the last winter;
and (4) of comparatively thin ice which has formed
over parts of the Ross Sea in middle or towards
the end of the last winter.

'Undoubtedly throughout the winter all ice-sheets
move and twist, tear apart and press up into ridges,
and thousands of bergs charge through these sheets,
raising hummocks and lines of pressure and mixing
things up; then of course where such rents are made
in the winter the sea freezes again, forming a newer
and thinner sheet.

'With the coming of summer the northern edge of
the sheet decays and the heavy ocean swell penetrates
it, gradually breaking it into smaller and smaller
fragments. Then the whole body moves to the north
and the swell of the Ross Sea attacks the southern
edge of the pack.

'This makes it clear why at the northern and southern
limits the pieces or ice-floes are comparatively
small, whilst in the middle the floes may be two
or three miles across; and why the pack may and
does consist of various natures of ice-floes in
extraordinary confusion.

'Further it will be understood why the belt grows
narrower and the floes thinner and smaller as the
summer advances.

'We know that where thick pack may be found early
in January, open water and a clear sea may be found
in February, and broadly that the
later the date the easier the chance of getting
through.

'A ship going through the pack must either break
through the floes, push them aside, or go round
them, observing that she cannot push
floes which are more than 200 or 300 yards across.

'Whether a ship can get through or not depends on
the thickness and nature of the ice, the size of
the floes and the closeness with which
they are packed together, as well as on her own
power.

'The situation of the main bodies of pack and the
closeness with which the floes are packed depend
almost entirely on the prevailing winds. One cannot
tell what winds have prevailed before one's arrival;
therefore one cannot know much about the situation
or density.

'Within limits the density is changing from day
to day and even from hour to hour; such changes
depend on the wind, but it may not necessarily be
a local wind, so that at times they seem almost
mysterious. One sees the floes pressing closely
against one another at a given time, and an hour
or two afterwards a gap of a foot or more may be
seen between each.

'When the floes are pressed together it is difficult
and sometimes impossible to force a way through,
but when there is release of pressure the sum of
many little gaps allows one to take a zigzag path.'